Some political pundits think that Georgia and Kentucky will be in play for the 2014 senate race, and that it is possible a Democrat could win one or both states. Considering the announced choices so far who will slug it out in the Georgia Republican primary next year, I can only hope they are right. Little is known about Michelle Nunn at this point, but she could be a change agent for the citizens of Georgia, something that has been long needed.

If you look at the Republican lineup, there are some interesting personalities. First is Paul Brown, a self-proclaimed practicing Christian who has been married four times, a man who majored in chemistry and became a doctor, and who then goes on to make wild statements that would counter good science. His views on abortion are even out of sync with most right to life supporters. Broun is so partisan that he couldn’t form a consensus in congress to declare that America loves apple pie and baseball. To his credit he served in the Marine Corps Reserves and was a medical officer in the navy.

Phil Gingrey isn’t that much different from Broun. I have no idea what he would bring to Georgians if he was to be elected. He would be 72 years old when sworn in, and 78 if he ran for a second term. Seniority in the senate matters, and it’s not likely that Gingrey would be there long enough to make a difference. Also consider that when he has taken bold stances, the minute he comes under fire he falls on his sword to those he “offended.” Recall the time, among others, when he publicly groveled all over His Porkulous (Rush Limbaugh) when His Porkulous took umbrage at some comments Gingrey made. Kind of makes it difficult to figure out what Gingrey stands for. I don’t speak for any veterans but myself, but I am sure I am not alone in resenting Gingrey’s failure to give something back to his country during Vietnam after getting tax subsidized educations at Georgia Tech and the Medical College of Georgia. The man has never opposed a war, but he failed to answer the war tocsin when doctors were needed, and I will never overlook that.

Karen Handel, like her fellow opponents, is a strong social conservative. Somehow passing laws pertaining to individual morality is not “more legislation.” This same candidate served as Fulton County Commission Chairperson and Secretary of State, but the common denominator for both is that she quit before serving out her terms to run for higher office. She never found time to finish her college education, which is remarkable in this day and time with all the different ways that it can be done. Commitment is not one of her virtues.

Jack Kingston is not much different from the other three. I will always remember how he got his back up when Nancy Pelosi became House Speaker and required the House to meet for a whole week at a time instead of the two and a half day workweek that they had become accustomed to. Kingston complained that it deprived him of family time. It’s hard for me to be sympathetic to a man who supported the Iraq War but never put on the uniform himself. If he had he would empathize with the troops who have been away from their families for a year or more at a time.

What I haven’t heard from any of the Republican candidates is anything about tax reform. They do pay lip service to it, but the three males who currently hold congressional seats have done nothing to actively promote legislation to deal with this one issue that unites American more than any other. One answer to explain it is that they are too busy dialing for dollars when they are in Washington, building up their campaign coffers from special interests instead of doing the business that the people sent them to Washington to do.

If Michelle Nunn makes tax and campaign finance reform platform issues along with jobs and the economy, stays away from social issues and focuses on the things relating to our quality of life, she just might pull it off. And Georgia would be the better for it. The four Republican candidates have little to nothing to show for the time the taxpayers have been supporting them. It’s time for them to get jobs in the private sector, which they proclaim they love so much.

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